Snow Valley
by SilverLady
Summary: Duo finds school life full of suprises.


Snow Valley Part One  
  
By SilverLady  
  
Duo lay staring at the ceiling of the room. He'd been staring at it for so long he knew every crack, hole and stain on it by heart. He'd counted how many panels there were and how many stains there were on each panel and every other thing about it that he could think of.  
  
He was getting heartily bored with staring at that ceiling.  
  
But the ceiling was about the only thing in the small room to look at. There was no television and the only window was a small one that he couldn't see out of from where he was. The sun did shine in for a few minutes every morning, as if letting him know that the world outside still existed and that life still went on, but for Duo things didn't change.  
  
He could set a clock by the routine his life had become. And he hated it. More than once he wished that they had just let him die. It couldn't be much worse than his life was now.  
  
He was trying to see if there were any interesting patterns in the holes on panel seven when the door opened. Since he figured it was just someone coming to check on him (they did that now and then) he didn't even turn his head.  
  
Andrew Mason stood in the doorway to the small room, stunned by the scene that met his eyes. This was supposed to be a well run state facility and yet there were signs that he could see, even just by standing in the door, that the boy in this room wasn't being tended to in the way that he needed. The paleness of the boy's complexion and the thinness of his arms spoke of little exercise and little sun. The faint odor of urine in the air told him that the boy's basic needs were probably not being met as well.  
  
Moving quietly, Andrew approached the bed. For Peter and for James he would see that this boy was taken care of. And the first thing it looked like he needed to do was get him out of here.  
  
"Duo?"  
  
Slowly the boy turned his head to look at him, sad blue-violet eyes examining him with little sign of interest.  
  
"My name is Andrew Mason."  
  
Duo studied the strange man that had come into his room. He didn't look like any of the social workers he'd seen. Nor the rare doctor. With a sigh he turned his head away. "So?"  
  
Andrew pulled up a chair and sat down. The odor of urine was stronger now and he wondered how often the boy was taken to use the rest room, since it was obvious he had no way of getting there himself. Andrew still wasn't sure of the wisdom of putting him in a room on the second floor of the building, especially a room with no private bathroom facilities.  
  
"I've been looking for you for several months."  
  
Duo was silent. He really didn't care what this man wanted. His experience with people who wanted to 'help' him lately had not increased his trust in others very much. "You found me."  
  
"You don't sound like you are to interested in knowing why I've been looking for you."  
  
"Perceptive of you."  
  
"Do you remember a man named Peter Wilkerson?"  
  
"Should I?"  
  
"He's the man that took you to the church orphanage."  
  
"Bully for him. What does he want now?"  
  
Andrew was not surprised by the sullen tone of the boy's voice. From what he had gathered the boy's life had been hell and it hadn't gotten any better in the past few months.  
  
"How are you felling?"  
  
"Subject change?"  
  
"I want to know if they're treating you all right."  
  
Silence. Duo doubted if the man really wanted to know what was going on. He shifted slightly, closing his eyes against the pain that flared up from his groin and buttocks from the movement. It was getting so he could hardly move at all, it hurt so bad. He dreaded the times when the nurse came in to 'tend to him' as she put it.  
  
Andrew saw the pain cross Duo's face. Before he could ask what was wrong one of the nursing assistants walked in. "Afternoon," she said in a sickingly cheerful voice. "Have you relieved yourself since this morning?"  
  
Andrew blinked in surprise at the strange question.  
  
"No." Duo replied in a flat voice. It hurt to much anymore.  
  
The woman tsked at him. "Well, I'm going to have to have a look any." With that she flipped back the sheet and yanked down the thin pajama bottoms Duo was wearing.  
  
Andrew was stunned to see that the boy was wearing what could only be called a diaper.  
  
The woman undid one side and slide her hand inside, apparently oblivious to the expression on her charge's face. It was a mixture of embarrassment and pain. "Dry. Well, I'll be back later." With that she turned and left the room.  
  
With his face turning even redder, Duo carefully reached down to pull the sheet back over himself.  
  
Andrew was livid. He knew from the doctors' reports that he had read that Duo was more than capable of taking care of himself. This sort of treatment was uncalled for.  
  
"How long has this been going on?" he demanded in a tight voice.  
  
Duo looked at him in surprised. "What?"  
  
Andrew waved his hand at the room. "This. All of it. When was the last time you were outside? When was the last time you were even out of this damn bed? How long have they been treating you like a complete invalid?"  
  
Duo blinked at the man's tone of voice. He really seemed to be angry by what he had just witnessed. Duo didn't know why. It had been like this since he'd gotten here. "Since I was put here."  
  
Andrew literally saw red. "Three and a half months?"  
  
"Yeah. So?"  
  
"Damn it. Why didn't you say something?"  
  
"To who? Nobody's gonna listen to a piece of street trash like me." Duo went to sit up so that he could better look at the man, but the pain was suddenly so bad it nearly knocked him out. With a gasp he sank back down onto the bed.  
  
Andrew was immediately on his feet. Reaching out he placed a hand on Duo's forehead. He wasn't surprised to find it far too warm. "You're running a fever. And you are obviously in pain. Where does it hurt the most?"  
  
"Why? You a doctor?"  
  
"No. But I'm going to call one and he's going to want to know."  
  
"It's not like one will come here."  
  
"I know that. I'm taking you to the hospital. After I call the doctor, I'm calling a judge. There's no way I'm leaving you here another minute. Now, where does it hurt the worst?"  
  
"My butt. And my groin."  
  
"Does it hurt when you urinate?"  
  
Duo blinked at him. "Uh?"  
  
"Does it hurt when you piss?"  
  
"Yeah. A lot. Like I'm on fire or somethin'."  
  
"Have you been eating right?"  
  
"I get my breakfast and my dinner."  
  
"What about lunch?"  
  
"What about it?"  
  
"Don't you get any lunch?"  
  
"No."  
  
"You've only been eating two meals a day."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"For how long?"  
  
"Since I got here."  
  
Andrew swore under his breath. He couldn't believe that this place was allowed to remain open under these circumstances. A complete investigation would have to be conducted and he would see that it was done. They should have never been give the care of this young man in the first place.  
  
"I'll be right back. I'm going to go make a few phone calls." With that Andrew turned and walked angrily from the room.  
  
Duo watched him go, not believing that he was going to really do anything. "Just like a suit. All talk and no action."  
  
But to Duo's shock, within an hour he found himself taken to a hospital and put under a doctor's care. 


End file.
